The Sound Of Running is the running blog of Marcus Ryder it accompanies the audio diary; audioboo.fm/TheSoundOfRunning and twitter feed of @RunningRyder. It charts the thoughts, musings and life of a keen amateur runner who is trying to figure out why he runs and why he loves it.
Warning: this blog will not make you a faster runner, slimmer or fitter. But hopefully it will make you think.

Monday, 8 April 2013

The Devil Makes Work For Idle Feet

It is two weeks to go before the London Marathon and I have developed
a few unhealthy obsessions. In an attempt to better my Personal Best
(PB) time by more than eleven minutes and run a sub 3 hour marathon I have
pushed my body harder than I have ever trained before.I have been doing sprint intervals, hill training, three
hour long trail runs, weight training and even cut caffeine out of my diet. My
muscles and body are tired after all this work and I am now on the “taper”
reducing the amount of exercise running up to the big day so my muscles are as
fit but rested as possible.The fact of the matter is I have done all the hard work and now
I am simply cruising for the next two weeks. The problem is that this gives me
far too much time to worry and obsess over things I would have literally taken
in my stride before (pun very much intended).To paraphrase: The devil makes work for idle feet.So here is some of the work I’ve created for myself while I
have been running less:I have a slight ache in my lower abdominal muscles - my
muscles are sore I’ve been running hundreds of miles in the last four months –
this is quite normal I should not be surprised. The whole point of the taper is
to rest the sore muscles. Instead of feeling relaxed however I am going online
and googling “sore lower abdominal muscles in runners”. I am now convinced I
have a sports hernia and may never be able to run again without undergoing extreme
surgery!Here is the next symptom of my idleness: Despite running two
previous marathons, a half marathon, a 16 mile race just a month ago and a 10k
race (all in the last year) I do not have the right shorts to run the London
marathon. I am absolutely convinced that what I need is a pair of shorts that
have a cycle shorts type inner lining with side pockets for my jelly babies. I
have shorts with a cycle shorts inner lining but without side pockets, I have
shorts with side pockets but with mesh lining. So yesterday I went on a wasted shopping
journey looking for these elusive perfect marathon shorts.I have no doubt I will be able to run the London marathon
with or without these shorts (just as I have run all my other races) and I am
also sure that a bit of rest will “cure” my supposed “sports hernia”. However I
am also sure that there will be a raft of other “problems” that will come up as
my exercise is reduced even further and I rest my legs before I line up at the
start of the marathon.(The picture today is of the only remedy for my “idle
running condition” and that’s of legs running.)

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About Me

I am a keen amateur runner. I love running but I'm more interested in what running can help me discover about myself and life than what I can tell the world about running. Running is not simply putting one foot in front of the other as fast and for as long as possible any more than meditation is simply closing your eyes sitting cross legged on the floor